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Congratulations to David Jones, Steve Metras and the rest of the fine people at Victory Lifts. Their submission of photos from the Ogdensburg Public Library has earned them the Garaventa Lift Project of the Month for November, 2016.

It is an interesting application. The enclosure design was expanded to include the entire upper landing of an adjacent stairway. This allows for passengers to travel safely in comfort in a region where winter weather can be harsh.

Interstingly, the area was also where Nazi fighter pilot Franz Xaver Baron von Werra landed in a rowboat after apparently being the only Axis prisoner of war to ever escape Canadian custody. It happened in 1940 during WWII. He eventually made it back to Germany in 1941 via the USA, Mexico, South America and Spain. It is also the only US port on the great St. Lawrence River.

We are very pleased to announce that the winner of the Garaventa Lift Project of the Month for October 2016.

Congratulations to Melissa and Scott Cleary of Mobility Concepts in Fife, Washington.

Their installation of a Genesis Enclosure vertical platform lift at the new Aviation Paviliion at the Seattle Museum of Flight has been selected. The lift allows for accessibility to the FedEx Air Cargo exhibit, housed within a 34 ft. fuselage section of a former FedEx Boeing 727 freighter. It is an interactive, behind-the-scenes exploration into the world of air deliveries.

We are very pleased to announce the Garaventa Lift Project of the Month for September, 2016 – the X3 Inclined Platform Lift installation at the famous Watergate Hotel in Washington, DC. After a $125 million, nine-year renovation, the hotel reopened recently.

“No need to break in,” its room key cards read—a nod to the infamous scandal of the Nixon administration that led to the president’s resignation. Originally designed by Italian architect Luigi Moretti in 1961 to look like a sail on the Potomac, the hotel has been vacant since 2007. Its current owners tapped Israeli designer Ron Arad and Italian designer Moroso to update the architecture and restore some of hotel’s original structures, like the staircase and indoor pool. Mad Men costume designer Janie Bryant designed the employee uniforms.

Thank you to Will Cromwell of Bedco Mobility in Baltimore for submitting the photos. The installation itself was more involved than what it might look like from the photos. The wall, you see, has a marble facade which will not bear any load. So the lift is actually attached to steel support posts behind the marble. The result is a clean-looking example of a custom-colored X3 Inclined Platform Lift installed at a pretty cool hotel. As proof of it’s coolness, the walls of the lobby bar are made from actual whisky bottles – nice.